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HEALTH

Coronavirus lockdown: First four towns quarantined in Spain

Four towns in Spain's northeastern Catalonia region were put under quarantine on Thursday, the civil protection agency said, in a first in the country.

Published: 12 March 2020 22:53 CET
Coronavirus lockdown: First four towns quarantined in Spain
File photo of Catalan police team. Photo: AFP

The 66,000 inhabitants of the localities of Igualada, Odena, Santa Margarida de Montbui and Vilanova del Cami “cannot leave their urban core” although they can leave their homes, a statement said, citing instructions from Catalonia's governor.  

? Trabajamos en el confinamiento en Igualada, Santa Margarida de Montbui, Òdena y Vilanova del Camí a partir de las 21h:
?Quien pueda acreditar q no vive en el municipio podrá salir tras ser identificado
?Quien quiera entrar en la ciudad lo podrá hacer xa quedarse#Coronavirus

— Mossos (@mossos) March 12, 2020

In a tweet from the Catalan police force above, they said those who can prove they are not residents in the municipalities will be allowed to leave before but those who want to enter will be forced to stay. 

Catalonia's health minister Alba Verges tod reporters that the authorities would be focussing on Igualada, a town of 40,000 inhabitants which is only 70 kilometres ( (40 miles) from the regional capital Barcelona, as the number of cases was growing rapidly.   

There are currently 58 cases in the town, 38 more than on Wednesday, he said.

Spain has seen the number of infections spiral since the start of the week, becoming one of the worst-hit countries in Europe.   

Madrid has borne the brunt of the crisis, clocking up 1,388 infections and 38 deaths by Thursday morning.

Late on Thursday, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez gave a televised press conference without any
journalists present, answering questions posed via WhatsApp.

“To beat the virus as quickly as possible, responsibility and social discipline is essential. This requires big changes in our habits,” said Sanchez who will conduct all future meetings by video conference.

Sanchez said the government had agreed on a raft of economic measures including a tax moratorium for affected companies as well as funding for the worst-hit sectors, such as tourism — which accounts for 12 percent of Spain's GDP.

In total, some 4.2 billion euros ($4.7 billion) would be unblocked, including nearly 3.0 billion for the regional health authorities, he said, with the tax deferrals and delayed payments amounting to some 14 billion euros.

His remarks came after yet another dire session for Spain's benchmark Ibex-35 which plunged more than 14 percent at the close, the worst drop on record .

Also Thursday, La Liga said Spain's top two divisions would be suspended for at least two weeks after Real Madrid confirmed its senior football team was in quarantine after one of the club's basketball players tested positive for the virus.   

The club's football and basketball players share facilities at Ciudad Real Madrid, its training ground in Valdebebas.

The culture ministry also announced the nationwide closure of all state-run museums.   

Also Thursday, seven other Spanish regions announced school closures, among them the northern regions of Catalonia, Aragon, Navarre, the Basque Country and Galicia, as well as Murcia in the south east and the Canary Islands.   

Such measures are already in place in the Madrid region and La Rioja.

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HEALTH

Danish parties agree to raise abortion limit to 18 weeks

Denmark's government has struck a deal with four other parties to raise the point in a pregnancy from which a foetus can be aborted from 12 weeks to 18 weeks, in the first big change to Danish abortion law in 50 years.

Published: 3 May 2024 08:06 CEST
Danish parties agree to raise abortion limit to 18 weeks

The government struck the deal with the Socialist Left Party, the Red Green Alliance, the Social Liberal Party and the Alternative party, last week with the formal announcement made on Monday  

“In terms of health, there is no evidence for the current week limit, nor is there anything to suggest that there will be significantly more or later abortions by moving the week limit,” Sophie Løhde, Denmark’s Minister of the Interior and Health, said in a press release announcing the deal.

The move follows the recommendations of Denmark’s Ethics Council, which in September 2023 proposed raising the term limit, pointing out that Denmark had one of the most restrictive abortion laws in Western Europe. 

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Under the deal, the seven parties, together with the Liberal Alliance and the Conservatives, have also entered into an agreement to replace the five regional abortion bodies with a new national abortion board, which will be based in Aarhus. 

From July 1st, 2025, this new board will be able to grant permission for abortions after the 18th week of pregnancy if there are special considerations to take into account. 

The parties have also agreed to grant 15-17-year-olds the right to have an abortion without parental consent or permission from the abortion board.

Marie Bjerre, Denmark’s minister for Digitalization and Equality, said in the press release that this followed logically from the age of sexual consent, which is 15 years old in Denmark. 

“Choosing whether to have an abortion is a difficult situation, and I hope that young women would get the support of their parents. But if there is disagreement, it must ultimately be the young woman’s own decision whether she wants to be a mother,” she said. 

The bill will be tabled in parliament over the coming year with the changes then coming into force on June 1st, 2025.

The right to free abortion was introduced in Denmark in 1973. 

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